Thank you NetGalley and Bantam Books for this ARC in exchange for a review.
Expected publication
March 11, 2025 by Bantam

Claire Darling is the debut book by author Callie Kazumi. I really enjoyed this and only learned that this was a debut when I looked for other books.

She’s been ghosted. But she won’t be forgotten.

Claire is excited to drop off a surprise workday lunch for her fiancé, Noah. It’s their anniversary, after all. But when the receptionist tells her that no one with Noah's name works there, Claire thinks there must be a mistake.

Noah isn't picking up her calls. Her texts go unanswered. It turns out Noah has a different life . . . one with a beautiful girlfriend, a beautiful house. Claire was never really in the picture.

Desperate to unpack all of Noah’s lies, Claire plunges into a nightmarish journey of obsession that submerges her deeper into the murky waters of her own past—a past dominated by a manipulative mother who shattered her sense of self.

If you enjoy bullying, trolling, stalking, trial, murder, unreliable characters, but reliable friends, this may be a book for you!
Bravo Calle Kazumi 👏🏻

The suspense of this novel is compelling. The main character Claire, is in a relationship with Noah Coors. In the beginning we see this story from Claire’s point of view. We sympathize with Claire for a mother wound tight. A mother so controlling Claire fears her reaction to everything. The first inkling that all is not as it seems is when a workmate starts questioning Claire about Noah, noticing him on social feeds with another women, Lilah. As Claire and her friend look into Noah’s life , we see the unraveling of Claire. Noah refuses to communicate with Claire which pushes her into a complete psychotic event. Unfortunately Lilah is the victim of this moment, and what follows is a fascinating exercise in misdirection. It will give you chills in the end. Happy reading

This was a wild ride! Claire goes to her fiance's work one day and finds that he no longer works there. She starts to realize that he has a double life and many aspects of their relationship have been hidden from her. While she is spiraling about her relationship the novel flashbacks to her life with her mother. This was the part of the book that had me practically in tears as I read about what a difficult life Claire has had to deal with.

This was a solid thriller, although I did guess the twist pretty early in. It still made for an interesting read. The book flowed easily and kept me engaged the entire time. Claire was a dynamic character and I enjoyed reading about her life. The flashbacks really helped to explain why she acted in the way that she did. I look forward to reading more by this author.

Thank you to Random House/Bantam Books and NetGalley for this ARC.

I finished this and I’m still sitting here like….. but that can’t be right! This was a story where you thought one thing but it was really another. Even with the truth being convoluted the story was still relatable because we as women are so often gaslighted and then we’re called crazy. This was a great psych thriller and lovers of the genre will enjoy it!

“For God’s sake, Claire, darling, he’s making a fool of you. Why would a man like that want a girl like you?”

What a debut!! Now this one is unhinged. And I’m here for it.
This book starts as heartbreak but spirals into something much darker. Claire goes to bring lunch to her fiancé, Noah’s, work only to discover he doesn’t work there anymore. Not only that, he isn’t answering any of her calls. She’s been ghosted! With her co-worker and new friend by her side, she is determined to get answers.
Through this we get Claire’s diary entries for when she first meets Noah and her childhood with a manipulative mother. Who has made her feel unloved and not good enough.
The lines between reality and delusion blur which makes this a tense and eerie read. Definitely recommend for psychological thriller fans.

Claire is finally putting the past behind her, and moving on from being raised by an abusive mother, when she runs into Noah, the perfect man. Instantly her world is better, as Noah teaches her that she is worthy of love and their relationship quickly turns serious.
When she goes to surprise him with lunch one day shortly after they get engaged, at his place of work, she’s shocked to learn, Noah no longer works there. Thinking there has to be some misunderstanding, she reaches out to him, but he completely ghosts her.
Claire is not one to be ghosted however, and she will do anything and everything to get answers.

This was such a quick fun thriller. I loved the short chapters, and the diary entries, really helps the reader to understand Claire’s dark past. This book is perfect for fans of Freida McFadden and Alex Michaelides.

Thank you to the publisher, the author, and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Ooooh Claire Darling, that sure was a fun ride!

For a debut novel in the popcorn thriller genre, Claire Darling checks all the boxes! Claire is finally lucky in love, ready to celebrate the one year anniversary with her fiancé Noah, when she is suddenly ghosted by him. Noah appears to be living a double life, with another fiancé.
As Claire tracks down Noah, the reader learns about Claire’s childhood and incredibly dysfunctional relationship with her mother. I don’t want to go into more detail so as not to give any spoilers, but this was incredibly well done character development for a binge-able thriller.

4.5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫


Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Claire raised by an abusive single mother makes her life what she wants. When her fiancé Noah ghosts her, we begin to learn some hard truths about Claire’s reality. The shocking twist ending reveals the depth of Claire’s mental state.

Absolutely loved thus book! I had an inkling about what was really going on but I still wasn't actually sure until the end...even then the epilogue for this book is one of the most surprising I've read before. Definitely plan to keep an eye on this author!

I really enjoyed this book . I finished it in one day I loved the surprise ending I would recommend this book with praise👍

Going in blind is the best way to experience this one, so I’ll keep things vague! I guessed the ‘twist’ super early, but that didn’t stop me from flying through it in a day. I just had to know what was actually going on with Claire and Noah.

Claire has a lot of unresolved trauma, especially from her mother, who completely wrecked her sense of self. So when Noah vanishes—like he never existed—Claire becomes obsessed with finding him, convinced their relationship was real. The diary entries throughout really drive home how stunted she is emotionally, and as the story unfolds, it becomes clear that Claire’s reliability is very questionable.

This isn’t really a thriller, even though it starts with a death. It’s more like domestic suspense or contemporary fiction with a psychological edge. Even though it was predictable, I didn’t mind because I was so locked in, wondering if Claire and Noah were ever actually engaged—or if something else was going on.

This was my first book by this author, and I’m definitely curious to see what they write next!

Big thanks to NetGalley and Random House Ballantine for the eARC. This one releases on March 11, 2025!

WoW. What a RIDE!

Oh Claire Darling!

When Claire's "Life" begins to unravel and her fiance Noah seems to walk away into thin air with another woman. Things begin to unravel for Claire. Where is Noah? Where is her "perfect" man? He was perfect by the way. Nice Vacations, a house they were renovating, and planning a wedding.

Claire has to know why Noah ghosted her. As she goes through the who, what, when, where, and whys nothing makes sense. Her mother was a witch (only because I don't think we can curse on Goodreads). Claire's whole life she has suffered by having no friends, an abusive alcoholic mother, and then when she met Noah her life was Perfect.

Oh, the webs we weave.
The world Claire lives in may not be the one anyone else lives in. The ending was great although I predicted it. That is the only reason this book is getting a 4 instead of a 5.

Oh Claire, Darling.

Thank you Bantom and Netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Claire, Darling was a book that intrigued me and I was excited to read. It was not a great read, but also othorrible. I felt the flashbacks were confusing until you get to the end. I felt the story was also slow paced.

I dnf’d this book at about a third of the way through. I was confused on why the flashbacks with her mother were included. They seemed depressing with no real obvious contribution to the main storyline.
I was also annoyed with the main character, Claire. I wanted her to stop whining and get revenge and move on!

What a great debut novel! I do confess that I struggled a bit in the beginning - trying to figure out where the story was headed, but once it took its first strong twist, I was fully invested. I felt for Claire and her crappy childhood, and I so wanted her to have happiness - so I feel Kazumi did a great job of creating a character you can feel empathy for. I have to say, the twist at the end was *Chef's Kiss.* I won't share more, because I don't want to ruin anything, but it was perfectly done.

This was a fun entertaining read that keeps ya guessing my first five star read in a while! I thought it was great for a debut

After being ghosted and humiliated by her perfect fiancé, Claire is left faltering and desperate for answers. This story is told chaotically through Claire's journal entries, witness statements, and flashbacks to Claire's childhood. The stories are sad and the facts just don't add up. The twist at the end makes the story make sense, but wasn't a satisfying ending to me.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc.

I was intrigued by the synopsis of this book and was excited to read it, but unfortunately the reality was that this book was too dark and disturbing for my taste. So when reading this book, I suggest you proceed with caution and check your trigger warnings.

Whoa I genuinely was so blown away at the ending. I love a tale of obsession, this was beautifully done.

Claire, Darling by Callie Kazumi does an excellent job of getting the reader to question her own conclusions. Early on, I suspected that Claire is an unreliable narrator. I thought I knew how the book would end and I was close. But Kazumi does such a fine job of Claire being a convincing enough narrator that--a few times--I thought I might be wrong. Claire seems to convince herself of her version of the truth and is an engaging enough voice that the reader gets a little drawn in as well. I look forward to more from this writer as she shows promise as a creator of suspenseful stories with deliciously unreliable narrators.